Style Lessons from the North Point Bar

The North Point Bar in Portland combines a classic look with some new approaches to furniture decoration. There are a few excellent reasons for this and lessons to be learned. Obviously those of you running your own business will have a bit more to learn than others so pay extra attention. They have taken a formerly defunct area and breathed new life into it. There is something to take notice of there for sure.

Part of what makes the bar so interesting is that it is run by two brothers. They each put in some input for each design decision. It’s always good to have someone giving you a bit of feedback so that you can keep everything in perspective. While too many people giving feedback can give a problem it’s almost always necessary to have one or two people saying something to you. You should try to bring the same setup to your own decisions as well.

So how is their style? It has a decidedly vintage look from the outdoor furniture to the bar stools. It looks like you are taking a step into the past. At the same time the pieces are well maintained and cared for. This is something most of us want to strive for. There is just something amazingly charming about any piece that looks classic yet has been cared for extremely well. It makes you feel like the business has been cared for well.

Their drinks and serving dishes also have this same feel to them. Many vintage wines are on tap in stylish bottles that were put together quite some time ago. As such they can command some premium prices for them as wine, much like furniture, often gets better with time. There is nothing new about this idea but they execute it well.

Their drink specials have a decidedly modern approach with half-price nights and happy hours. If you have not instituted similar specials at your own business now may be the time. Sure you don’t want to leave money on the table but the interesting thing about these is that the positive word of mouth generated often outweighs any money you might have lost.

Another departure from the norm that isn’t just with Outdoor Furniture is their hours. They have late hours on weekends to fit with the party crowd and the kitchen is open as well. Food is an important part of the charm for many people and could be for your place as well.

Being social is a vital part of any bar like this. They post on social media and have social music for their patrons. Connecting with people is what keeps many businesses alive so you want to bring that aspect into it as well. Word of mouth is both hard to get, in the good variety, and incredibly valuable. While we can’t give you a formula for it we can tell you to follow their example with the various things they have done in order to create a new hotspot.